Legal and Compliance Officer programme

The Legal and Compliance Officer programme lasts three years and provides an insight into various specialist areas at FINMA. Participants can expect challenging duties at the pulse of the financial world.

The Legal and Compliance Officer programme is broadly based and targets very well-qualified lawyers looking to raise their profile as generalists in financial market law. Participants in the three-year programme change specialist area within FINMA annually. This allows them to deepen their knowledge in the respective areas. As a permanent employee, you work at the interface between law and business and gain a deep insight into the Swiss finance industry.

Programme participants represent the financial market regulator on the front line, take responsibility and help shape the way in which FINMA carries out its supervisory activities.

Depending on the programme chosen, they deal with business in institutional asset management, combating money laundering and financial crime, trading venues and post-trading, and investigating authorised and unauthorised activities. Or they license institutions such as securities dealers, fund management companies, asset managers and depositories, authorise collective investment schemes and work on bank licensing, legislative amendments and other regulatory projects.

“The Legal & Compliance programme offers a fantastic opportunity to come into contact with a variety of stakeholders in the world of financial markets. Over three years, you gain an insight into various specialist areas and can deepen your practical knowledge of financial market law in this way.”
Jonas Prangenberg

“This high-level FINMA training programme offers me the opportunity to take on exciting challenges in the area of financial market law and to find long-term solutions to these.”
Julia Wetzel

“As a programme participant, I gain an in-depth insight into three different areas of financial market law. Evaluating the issuance of licences, working together with the in-house lawyers and economists, as well as dealing with institutions and their legal representatives is challenging and exciting. I can’t imagine better on-the-job training for financial market law specialists.”Nico Hess

“The Legal & Compliance Officer programme is extremely diverse. It offers an attractive opportunity to take on responsibility in three different areas of financial market supervision. The experience is rounded off by the fact that you are working in competent and motivated teams. Highly recommended in every respect!”Simona Aeberhard

“The programme allows you to acquire a broad range of knowledge in the area of financial market law. The programme participants are fully integrated into the teams and are able to take on responsibility very quickly.”Pierre Portmann